Off Flavors in Eggs? Wood Ash, Straw, Broccoli? What could cause it?

[CritterHill]

This is weird. Occasionally, the girls will leave me an egg that tastes...fishy. I eat them anyway with no ill effects

It isn't all the time. Maybe only one hen that is laying them? I do collect eggs twice a day and they are always in the nest boxes, so I know it isn't an "old" egg.

I'm wondering if it could be something I am feeding them? They get all the leftovers from my kids dinner plates (non-chicken leftovers), but split between 11 hens, it isn't much per hen.

I do give them the occasional head of broccoli and a handful of scratch each day in addition to their layer feed. They get a lot of left over mac and cheese. Peas, steamed broccoli, ham slice, lots of apple cores and peels.

Could any of the above be causing this? Is there any other foods I should stay away from that may flavor the eggs? Any other ideas what could be causing this?

Thanks!

 

[imfowl]

I would suggest reading the ingredients of your feed. I know they put fish meal in a lot of feed, not sure if they put it in chicken feed, but it cant hurt to check.

 

[CritterHill]

Thanks, I'm using Southern States poultry feed and a quick google search, though not giving me the actual ingredients, isn't turning up anything about fish meal either.

Other ideas?

 

[miss_jayne]

lots of soy = fishy eggs

 

[CritterHill]

Hmmm, I'll have to look into the soy thing. I don't feed it to them, but again maybe it is in the feed.

Though I haven't changed feed and this is a new phenomenon.

What about broccoli? Can that flavor the eggs? They have been getting a lot of that lately.

 

[miss_jayne]

Quote:
yes, the whole cabbage family can give an off flavor if given in large amounts.

 

[CritterHill]

Wait! Straw! That's what's new! I put some straw bales in their run when this weather started to make a wind break. I also broke open a bale to cover the ice in their run.

Can straw flavor the eggs if they ate it (I do see them pecking at it)?

 

[CritterHill]

Quote:
yes, the whole cabbage family can give an off flavor if given in large amounts.

Hmmm, thanks. Yes, I did recently give them 2 large heads of broccoli at once, but split among 11 chickens, I didn't think it was that much. Maybe one chicken in particular is eating the lion's share of the broccoli. Maybe that would explain why one out of every dozen or so eggs tastes funny.

 

[CritterHill]

Ok, I am having another thought. We also recently started throwing the ash from the wood stove into their run to cover the ice and for dust baths. Could that flavor eggs if they ate it?

 

[speckledhen]

I vote broccoli. We use wood ash all the time and never have had off-flavored eggs.